An Introduction to Justin Boyles
A mysterious ailment, dubbed White Nose Syndrome (WNS), has been killing large numbers of hibernating bats in the Northeastern United States. There has been considerable media coverage describing the problem in recent months, but the ever-changing status of the problem and the solutions proposed by the research and management communities mean the coverage is often superficial. My goal in this blog is to provide a more thorough treatment of what we know about WNS and what is being done to identify and resolve the problem. My first several entries will describe the history of WNS, the implications of the problem, and the research that is being conducted on WNS. After the initial background information, most of my entries will act as updates as new developments unfold.
March 22nd, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Justin:
what’s the latest update on this? any clues to a cause? perhaps you can explain the significance of the fact that the bats are apparently not waking during hibernation?
many thanks;
jim metzner
March 24th, 2008 at 8:07 am
Clues on the cause are still few and far between.
In the other question, Jim is referring to a symptom of WNS–the bats don’t show their normal response to disturbance, which is to warm up from hibernation. This most likely indicates an energy limitation, which I will get into in more detail in future entries.